Union Square Greenmarket

If you’ve ever been to a local outdoor market, you know why it’s something to talk about. Farmers bring their very best product and knowledge to the table, while wandering shoppers weave through music, visual art and new wisdom brought to them by the rest of their community. You not only can sample cheeses and jam, but you can ask questions about how cattle were treated or strike up a conversation with a honey selling honey. The best part? Your supporting locally grown goods and giving back to your own town. Or city in some cases.

We visited the Union Square Greenmarket in New York City recently and found not just the things listed above, but a few other cool perks that sparked our smiles.

1) Community composting
NYC may not have curbside composting available for most, but if you’re ambitious, you can save your scraps at home and bring them here (extra points for you if you are lugging this on the subway!). The Lower East Side Ecology Program will happily take it and process it in their in-vessel composting system. Return to the market in about 3 months, and you can purchase your scraps as compost soil or potting soil.

2) Wooly wonders
As both cooler weather and gifting holidays approach, knitting a scarf or hat couldn’t be a better way to spend your bus or subway ride. But where to get your yarn? The helpful folks at the Catskill Merino Sheep Farm booth can tell you all sorts of things about their wool as you bob between the bright colors, all of which is hand dyed and made from pasture raised sheep. You can even get unwashed wool and spin your own yarn – a new activity for the soup-to-nuts hobbyist or ambitious soul who enjoys keeping their hands busy.

3) Year-round action on multiple days
You might have more time to saunter the aisles on a Saturday, but how about picking up some fresh produce for your meals during the week? This greenmarket gives you that option. It is held every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 8 AM to 6 PM. Fresh pasta and caprese, anyone?

Now is the best time of the year to go because it’s harvest season! Fresh cider, home made pasta, beeswax candles, and things that have the word “butternut” in them are overflowing on brightly colored tables. Bring a reusable bag and kick leaves all the way there and back as you enjoy the brisk onset of the cold season ahead. Stay healthy and warm, and enjoy.